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When BMW announced that the Neue Klasse design would extend to their gasoline vehicles, they were serious. We've recently heard directly from the company's head of design that both internal combustion engine (ICE) and electric vehicle (EV) models will share a strikingly similar appearance. In fact, distinguishing between the two may become quite challenging. You could argue that this blending of styles is already in progress, and you would be absolutely correct.
Nevertheless, although the current electric BMWs share platforms with their gasoline counterparts, a clearer distinction is on the horizon. The Neue Klasse will introduce the company's first dedicated architecture specifically designed for electric vehicles. Nonetheless, the design elements will also significantly influence traditional combustion engine models.
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In an interview with BMWBLOG ahead of CES, Adrian van Hooydonk explained how strikingly similar future gas and electric cars will be: “I think you will be hard-pressed [from a distance] to tell which one is the electric one and which one is the combustion engine. It’s going to be that close.” However, he added that dedicated EVs will have shorter noses, allowing the saved space to improve cabin room. It’s a predictable change, given how an EV needs less space underneath the hood after deleting the combustion engine.
“Neue Klasse will initially launch a selection of electric vehicles, but many of the innovations—especially in digital technology, user interfaces, and design aesthetics—will also be integrated into our internal combustion engine (ICE) models. The initiative will begin with electric cars, yet it aims to include the whole range of vehicles, representing the entire brand and all types of propulsion systems.”
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We should point out that not all fufromEVs BMW will ride on the dedicated platform. There will still be electric cars with the same underpinning as gas models. As previously reported, work is underway for the iX5, iX6, and iX7 models on the tried-and-tested CLAR. Naturally, these will be heavily related to the next-gen X5, X6, and X7 with combustion engines.
Future BMWs will share more than the design language between ICE and EV models. The iDrive X is coming to all cars, not just next-gen models but also existing vehicles that will undergo a Life Cycle Impulse. Consequently, whether you love or loathe it, expect the BMW of tomorrow to have a huge center screen. In addition, a dashboard-wide projection, dubbed Panoramic Vision, is coming to gas cars, too.
